Former Wakefield College student, Kimberley Hattersley-Barton, has been named the Regional ITV Calendar North Fundraiser of the Year for the Pride of Britain Awards, in recognition of her incredible efforts raising money for charities that have supported her through various cancer diagnoses.
Kimberley’s Life With The Ribbon fundraising project hosted two charity galas which raised over £40,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support, Starlight Children’s Foundation, Beads of Courage UK and When You Wish Upon a Star.
ITV News Calendar congratulated Kimberley as one of the regional winners of the Pride of Britain Awards, surprising her on live television with a trophy. She is one of seventeen who will attend the final award ceremony, taking place later this year in London, where she’ll represent the region and compete for the overall Pride of Britain Award.
Kimberley said: “I feel honoured to be a qualified finalist for the Pride of Britain Awards and privileged to be amongst so many other incredible fundraisers. At the beginning of the year, I was recovering from my fifth cancer surgery and having speech therapy, so this accomplishment is a reminder to myself that anything is possible and to remain hopeful during difficult times. It would mean the absolute world to me if I won the overall award.”
The most recent Life With The Ribbon charity gala took place at Unity Hall in Wakefield earlier this year to celebrate five years of remission for Kimberley. The evening featured West End stars, industry professionals and local rising stars in a series of performances.
Kimberley’s Life With The Ribbon charity gala.
At 13 months old, Kimberley was diagnosed with a rare childhood cancer, Rhabdomyosarcoma. Since then, she has been diagnosed with a further four cancers and undergone multiple surgeries and treatments including chemotherapy. Now twenty-seven years old, she visits the hospital three times a week to receive dialysis treatment and still faces ongoing, long-term health issues including kidney, ovarian and heart failure.
Kimberley said: “Initially, I began sharing my personal experience online to help spread awareness about cancer diagnoses and build a community during the Covid-19 lockdown. I then decided to extend this to a fundraising project and host charity galas to raise money for the charities who have helped me throughout my various diagnoses, as I know first-hand the impact these charities have. This was my way of giving back to others like me.”
Kimberley studied Fashion & Textiles at Wakefield College between the years 2014 and 2016 when she was diagnosed with her second cancer, which led to her departure from the course for surgery and treatment. With the help and support from her tutor, Kimberley was still able to complete her course and gain work experience and placements after College.
The Pride of Britain Awards is held annually and ‘honours ordinary people who’ve done extraordinary things’. Following tens of thousands of public nominations, a judging panel will decide who the final Pride of Britain accolade is awarded to on the night of the awards.
If you would like to support one of Kimberley’s chosen charities, please visit their websites below:
If you would like to follow Kimberley’s project, her social media channels are:
- Instagram: @kimberleys_lifewiththeribbon
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kimberleyslifewiththeribbon
If you would like to find out more about Wakefield College, its alumni and current course offer, you can visit the College website.